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BearSportsNews Sunday Edition 4.14.2019
Green Spring Bear
HIGHLIGHTS
Bears within the White Rocks
Basketball has an exciting new coach
Baseball, Golf, Lacrosse, and Rugby win big matches
Tracking Bears OUTSIDE THE White Rocks
Randy Bednar is on a hot streak
Golfers are swinging in the Spring Season
Sam Anas sis still playing hockey
Ruggers are playing, but cannot track them HELP
INSIDE THE WHITE ROCKS
The Bears have a new Basketball Coach
Landon has a new leader for its basketball program following a nationwide search. Hajj Turner, who most recently served as the associate head coach of the men’s team at George Washington University (GWU), has been chosen as Landon’s new head varsity basketball coach.
Turner joins the Bears after eight seasons with the Colonials. At GWU, he helped lead the team to four consecutive 20 plus win seasons, a bid to the NCAA tournament, and a National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship with Joe McDonald ’12. [See below picture of one of the Bears greatest basketball players and the new Bear Coach celebrating a NIT win.]
Turner also played Division I basketball as a forward and team captain at the University of Louisville and had the opportunity to take the court for coaches Denny Crum and Rick Pitino.
Prior to his work at GWU, Turner spent six seasons on the coaching staff at the University of Vermont (UVM) including one as the associate head men’s basketball coach. UVM compiled a 126-68 record during that time, including one bid to the NCAA tournament and two bids to the NIT. Turner and his Catamount colleagues earned two coaching staff of the year awards.
Turner also worked at the University of Maryland for two years as the assistant director and men’s basketball coordinator of the school’s academic support and career development unit. Turner recruited, coached, and helped develop three NBA players and others who went on to professional careers overseas.
Turner holds a B.S. in Pan-African Studies and a M.A. in Higher Education, both from the University of Louisville. At Louisville, he graduated Cum Laude, earned academic Honor Roll honors in each of his five seasons, and became only the second player in school history to pursue a master’s degree while playing for the team.
He has also focused on mentoring student-athletes throughout his career, including serving as liaison to the academic coordinator at GWU and UVM and assisting with community service and career development programming.
“My family and I are extremely excited to be part of a community with such a great academic and athletic history,” said Turner, a Charlottesville, VA native who has a daughter and two sons with his wife, Vivian. “I can’t wait to hit the ground running!”
Landon Athletics Director Bill Brady said Turner’s wealth of experience in mentoring young men was critical to his selection to lead the basketball program.
“As our committee identified what it wanted in our next head coach, we discussed that person being a strong role model for the boys, an excellent educator on and off the court, and a leader with a clear vision for developing young men,” said Brady. “In Hajj, we feel like we hit the jackpot in all those areas.”
Turner will also serve as a Lower School social studies teacher. He succeeds Interim Head Coach Charles Harley, who will continue his work at Landon as an assistant to the Athletics Director and with both the football and basketball programs.
Other facts about Coach Turner
’00-’01 Best Field Goal Percentage Award .507
former team captain at Louisville
Hajj was a very highly touted prospect coming out of high school, but struggled with some injuries during his time at Louisville.
really interesting story about Coach Turner’s career at Louisville (excerpted because of length):
In the Muslim tradition, the hajj is a sacred pilgrimage. For the Cardinal’s Hajj Turner, the college journey has been no less arduous or rewarding.
Hajj Malik Turner was named after his distant cousin El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, who is better known to the world as Malcolm X. Like the person from which he was named, Turner has set an example for many to follow as a symbol of unity and overcoming adversity.
Life held high expectations for Turner as a senior at Charlottesville High School in Virginia. Hajj shot 59% from the field while averaging 21.5 points, 14.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game to lead his team to the district championship. He had single game highs of 42 points and 22 rebounds and was a second team all-state selection. He was also the district player of the year as both a junior and a senior.
“Hajj was a pretty athletic high school player,” said Scotty Davenport who was an assistant coach with Louisville when Turner was recruited. “I don’t think we ever thought he would be a tremendous shooter, but a very athletic kid when it comes to rebounding, being able to outrun people, etc.” But then all too quickly Turners world came crashing around him. During the Virginia All-Star game practice Turner injured his right knee. While it was not believed to be bad at the time, the injury was worsened during a pickup game at Louisville before his career even began.
Standing on the floor of Cardinal Arena during this year’s media day, Hajj could point to the spot where his world stopped turning. “I hurt my knee in this gym on the old floor,” said Turner, “just cutting the wrong way. It was really just a freak accident, just coming down wrong.”
On July 22, 1997 Turner underwent surgery to repair the tear in his right knee. As a result he sat out the entire season as a medical redshirt. As he agonized through rehabilitation Hajj he kept his hopes up because he believed that he would have many playing days ahead once he had fully healed. But a year later the injury was still not better.
On September 26, 1998 Turner entered the operating room once again. This time to repair his torn anterior cruciate ligament and the medial meniscus in his right knee.
Turner was able to return and practice with the team in the second half of the 1998-99 season but had to wear a knee brace the entire time. Yet, he was still unable to take to the floor and play the game that he loved.
…
Even though the injury had hampered his basketball skills, Turner tried to do the most with what he had. “I’ve had more time to become more acclimated with the normal student body. I’ve embraced that opportunity. I got involved in different organizations, met lots of teachers and students that I probably wouldn’t have met if I was just thinking basketball. When I got injured it helped my social life and it helped my people skills and I think it helped my grades also.”
“There’s no positives,” Davenport said when speaking of Turner’s injury, “but I think if you look at it as athletics teaching life’s lessons, Hajj is a tremendous example. I think he would have been a tremendous student no matter what. But I think the understanding that ÔI have to be the whole person’, Hajj is an example that everybody should be measured by.”
“I’m not saying what happened to me wasn’t a tragedy,” said Turner. “In the big scheme of things, stuff that can happen to you and things that happen to people; this is small cookies.” Yet, Turner knew that now he may be able to contribute to the team in ways that he had previously never imagined.
“There’s going to be times when people are going to be down. And if I can just sit and tell people what I’ve been through then they can see me smiling about it. I want to be in a position where if somebody’s down I can get on them and tell them not to be down. There’s not a whole lot of situations that will take them lower than where I was.
” Turner’s positives strides were rewarded in the spring of 2001 when he earned his undergraduate degree in Pan African Studies with a 3.75 GPA. He was also only one of five recipients of the John McLendon Memorial Scholarship which has allowed him to continue his education at U of L.
….
[The full article is well worth reading for those who would like to learn more about his teacher/mentor/coach history.]
SPRING SPORTS
Baseball (5-4)
Bears beat the GDS Grasshoppers 11-2 Dane Camphausen had a homer and Jed Rosenberg pitched well. . The Maroon took two Jake Davidson and Jack Cope pitched great. Lost 3-1 and 3-2 ( in 9 innings).
Golf
Huge day from Johnny Muller ‘20 shooting 2 under par 33, Charlie Bundy ‘21 with a 37, and Charles Nottingham ‘19 with a 40. Landon 199 EHS 208. Special thanks to Coach Fitzgerald and the Maroon for a great match!
Lacrosse (7-4) Bears beat DeMatha 10-8 in a closely contested game. Then, in a match worthy of the Duke of Wellington’s [not the Wellington’s of Landon] famous fields of Eton quote, the Bears beat WaPo #7 StA 10-7.
BEAT PREP!!!
Outdoor Track and Field meet on Saturday 4/6 AND 13
Rugby (2-1) The final score on a wet slippery day was a 17-14 win to Landon. Good job The Heights who were very intense in what would be described not the prettiest game of rugby. Thanks to Craig Brown who called a good game. We dodged a bullet and managed to pull out a last minute win.
Tennis (1-2) played Flint Hill
BEAR TRACKS
Basketball (6)
Professional Basketball (1)
Darion Atkins (L 11) Hapoel Holon, 19-7 2nd place Israeli Basketball Premier League; lost to Hapoel Eilat 72-87; stats 26 games, 23.7 ave min, 12.6 ppg, 7.1 reb.
Professional Indoor Football (1)
Terrence Fullum (L11) DL San Diego Strike Force (0-6)–
Ice Hockey (7)
AHL
Sam Anas (L11) Iowa Wild (36-26-8-5; 85 pts; 3rd in conference. Played 56 games, 14G, 24 A, 3 GWG
Spring Sports
Baseball (2)
Randy Bednar Jr., (L17) University of Maryland Terps, 17-16; RB: hitting .270, 37 hits, 31 rbi’s, 24 runs, 6 hr’s, .987 fielding
AGAINST NORTHWESTERN
Patrick Lightner, (L16) Marist College Red Foxes (14-18)
Golf (4)
John Kalavritinos, (L17) Bucknell University (1-0) team was 17th at the Wildcat Invitational
Evan Katz, (L17) Duke University. NCAA #9 Team 2nd in Clemson Invitational behind #8 Ga Tech; EK tied for seventh with a career-best 10-under, 206. Katz blazed through Sunday with his best round of the weekend at 67, one shot better than Saturday’s performance. After starting with birdies one two of the first six holes, Katz sat just one under par through the 13th hole before drilling four consecutive birdies and an even par to finish at five under for the day.
Mike Blasey, (L15), Davidson College – playing in the Irish Creek Intercollegiate Team Wildcats 5thMB: shot an 80; in shortened Stitch team was 6th and
Morgan Egloff (L15). Rollins College off until 4/14
Lacrosse
BLTF was posted yesterday and will be again the week.
Rugby 🏉 (7)
I KNOW THAT THERE ARE RUGBY MATCHES BEING PLAYED BUT I HAVE NOT DISCOVERED THE CODE TO RESEARCH THIS INFORMATION.
Rugby is such a growing sport at Landon and publishing the stories of these seven Bears would add to the interest inside the White Rocks!!!
Tommy Baldwin L18, Bucknell Bison no Spring Schedule published yet.
Joel Desroches L18, Ithaca College, Bombers, no Spring Schedule published yet.
Aiden Howe L18, St. Mary’s College of California GaelsMen’s Rugby C vs D3 All Stars | Moraga, CA
Wesley Pan L16 VA Tech Hokies 5-6 next Cherry Blossom @ Leesburg, VA (?) and CCRC at Maryland(?)
Parker Swensrud L18, Denver University, Pioneers,
Max Spiritos L17, University of Illinois rostered, March 30th Big Ten 7’s, in Champaign-Urbana
Trevor Wolf L15 Denver University, Pioneers, injured
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